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Professor Zhou Renjie from the Department of Biomedical Engineering and Professor Sun Xiankai from the Department of Electronic Engineering at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK)’s Faculty of Engineering have been elected as Fellows of the International Society for Optics and Photonics (SPIE) in the 2026 class. This year, 40 distinguished scholars from around the world received this prestigious honour, with Professors Zhou and Sun are the only recipients from Hong Kong.

Professor Zhou is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, where he leads the Laser Metrology and Biomedicine Laboratory. His research focuses on advancing light microscopy technologies, particularly in the field of quantitative phase imaging, and demonstrating the impact across interdisciplinary domains.

Professor Zhou said: “Being elected as an SPIE Fellow is a tremendous honour for me. Over the past two decades, I have always kept my initial curiosity about photons and done my best to contributions to the related fields. I first joined SPIE as a student member in 2009 and sought every possible opportunity to interact with pioneers and peers in optics at SPIE meetings, learning about the latest advances, especially at Photonics West, the largest conference in our field. Today, at CUHK, I feel very fortunate to work with a talented team to advance an emerging label-free optical imaging technique called quantitative phase microscopy, to demonstrate its impact together with many excellent collaborators, and to co-organise numerous optics meetings with our collegial colleagues. Being named an SPIE Fellow marks a new beginning for me, one that enables me to serve our local, national and global communities in broader ways while highlighting the impact of optics and photonics in biomedicine, AI, advanced manufacturing, social sustainability, and beyond.”

Professor Sun is currently a Professor of Electronic Engineering and an Associate Director of the Centre of Optical Sciences. He is an expert on chip-scale integrated photonic, electronic and mechanical devices and systems. His current research focuses on novel photonic and optomechanical nanodevices for both fundamental research and practical applications.

Professor Sun said: “I am honoured and humbled to be elected as an SPIE Fellow. I am deeply grateful to CUHK, as well as its Faculty of Engineering and Department of Electronic Engineering, for their support over the years, to all those who have supported our research and development efforts, and to my postgraduate students and postdoctoral researchers. I will continue to make contributions to science, engineering, and higher education, addressing challenges in both fundamental research and practical applications for the betterment of Hong Kong, our nation, and the world.”

SPIE is a leading global society advancing light-based science and technology, dedicated to advancing light-based technologies through interdisciplinary collaboration, education and innovation. The title of SPIE Fellow is awarded to individuals who have made outstanding scientific and technical contributions in optics, photonics and imaging, and who have actively served the academic community. This honour recognises the pioneering research and profound impact of the two professors in their respective fields. The newly elected Fellows will be formally acknowledged during SPIE conferences in 2026.

For the list of 2026 SPIE Fellows, please visit:
https://spie.org/news/spie-announces-2026-fellows